Optical fibers and fiber ribbons are often used to transfer data at high speeds in computing and communication systems. Such a role often involves routing optical fibers through restricted spaces and convoluted pathways (e.g. in a chassis). Complex routing may present difficulties because optical fibers tend to not tolerate bending well. Optical fibers usually exhibit a minimum bend radius, and imposing a bend under that radius can result in degraded performance, such as data signal attenuation. Furthermore, excessive bending can strain the material of the fiber and introduce flaws. Multimode optical fibers can be particularly susceptible to the effects of bending, which can cause mode stripping (i.e. loss of higher order modes in the fiber). The uses of optical fibers may be further broadened by approaches that facilitate the use of optical fibers to transmit data through sharply angled pathways.